Valentine 'buy NZ Grown' says NZ Flower Industry

We are all romantics at heart it seems. And somehow when the heart is involved small issues like cost seem to melt away. Despite this the more discerning and budget conscious consumer will most likely be looking to find a bargain when searching for the perfect red bloom.

With cheap roses likely to flood into the country from India (358,000 stems came in during February 2013, Mothers Day was even bigger) local growers look to what can be done to encourage the Valentines buyer to 'buy NZ Grown'. The PR Agency will be concentrating in their press release campaign this month on key aspects of buying local:

The PR Campaign will cover the following key communication elements and vehicles

It is important for New Zealanders to know three things in the lead up to Valentine’s Day this year

1. People buying flowers need to know where they are coming from. Are they from overseas and therefore drenched in Round Up/ chemicals to prevent the importation of insects? And if so, they will have a shorter shelf life.  Or are they from local growers who produce a ‘longer lasting’ flower and who deserve New Zealander’s support?

2. The history of Valentine’s Day and the strong romantic feelings red flowers in particular evoke.  This will encourage flower purchases.

3. The huge amount of work, effort and care from local flower growers that goes into preparing flowers for Valentine’s Day.  This provides a human angle for the media to focus on.

TV current affairs

To get these messages across to the New Zealand public PR will be directed at individual reporters on the main current affairs television programmes

The offer of opportunities to visit with a local flower grower to see exactly what work goes into preparing for Valentine’s Day.

Major radio stations and Sunday Star Times

Diseminate the main story to the main national radio stations - and key personalities with an empathy for green issues

General media

A general press release will go out to all media including TV news, radio stations and newspapers around the country in the days leading up to Valentine’s Day.

This press release would cover all three angles. Follow up with any requests for interviews

Bloggers

There are a variety of high profile news bloggers and ‘social commentators’ who are active on social media and who feed material into the mainstream news machine.  Key players will be targetted to ensure all possible media outlets are covered.

Media log

A detailed media log of all coverage and report it to the Association after Valentine’s Day

Follow GrowerNews or read the next Flower Growers Association Newsletter for information on the effectiveness of this campaign. It is intended that the three key windows Valentines, Mothers Day and Christmas will be hit with 'Buy NZ Grown' public relations efforts under the wing of the NZ Flower Growers Association. For more information please contact

David Blewden [email protected]

Ian Kempthorne [email protected]

Daniel Paul [email protected]